{"product_id":"cosmic-star-heroine","title":"Cosmic Star Heroine","description":"\u003ch3 style=\"font-size:1.25em;font-weight:700;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.5em;\"\u003eItem Condition\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eComplete in box: the game cartridge and its original case, with any printed inserts shown in the photos. The photos are of this exact copy — look them over closely for its condition, packaging and details. Every game is tested before it's listed. It ships in a collector's bag or a hard plastic case.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3 style=\"font-size:1.25em;font-weight:700;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.5em;\"\u003eItem Description\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhat if a 16-bit RPG had been written as a spy thriller? Cosmic Star Heroine follows Alyssa L'Salle, a top agent of the Agency of Peace \u0026amp; Intelligence, whose investigation turns up a conspiracy reaching into her own organization and sends her on the run across the galaxy. Zeboyd Games, the team behind Cthulhu Saves the World, built it as a love letter to Chrono Trigger and Phantasy Star IV, with a dash of Mass Effect's sci-fi swagger, and funded it through a Kickstarter campaign in 2013.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe combat is the main event, and it is cleverer than the retro look suggests. There is no MP. Each character carries up to seven abilities, and using one spends it until you take a turn to defend, which recharges everything, so battles become a rhythm of unloading, recovering and planning the next burst. Characters also build toward Hyper turns in their own unique patterns, when their abilities hit far harder, and a Style gauge multiplies damage as a fight goes on. Enemies are visible on the field rather than ambushing you at random, and the four difficulty levels can be changed at any time.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAlyssa's party grows to as many as eleven recruitable characters, with four fighting at once, and the journey spans three planets: Araenu, a cyberpunk world of megacorporations, slums and nightclubs; Rhomu, a Wild West frontier whose people retreated underground after a devastating war; and Nuluup, a green world of astral powers and restless souls. Eventually the crew claims a starship as a mobile base, which you upgrade by recruiting specialists in the tradition of Suikoden. The bright pixel art is matched by a soundtrack from HyperDuck SoundWorks, the studio that scored Dust: An Elysian Tail, full of funky synth grooves that suit the spy-fi tone.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCritics singled out the battle system, the retro graphics and the music as the highlights, and the brisk pacing makes it an easy RPG to play in shorter handheld sessions. Its physical Vita edition came from Limited Run Games, and it is a natural fit beside other modern takes on the classic JRPG on the system: a fast, tactical, stylish adventure that plays like a lost Genesis-era gem with modern sensibilities.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Coolection","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56178503450790,"sku":"PCQ-50691-CIB","price":49.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0651\/7404\/4838\/files\/IMG_0724-Photoroom.png?v=1770772703","url":"https:\/\/coolection.com\/products\/cosmic-star-heroine","provider":"Coolection","version":"1.0","type":"link"}